Joint Circular No. 02/2008/TTLT-BKH-NN-TC guides the implementation of Decision No. 147/2007/QD-TTg dated September 10, 2007 of the Prime Minister on certain policies for developing production forests.

JOINT CIRCULAR

Guidelines for implementing Decision 147/2007/QĐ-TTg dated September 10, 2007 of the Prime Minister

on certain policies for developing production forests

____________________________ 

Pursuant to Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg dated September 10, 2007 of the Prime Minister on certain policies for developing production forests for the period 2007-2015 (hereinafter referred to as Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg).

The Ministry of Planning and Investment - The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development - The Ministry of Finance provide guidelines as follows.

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS

The terms used in this Circular shall be understood as follows:

1. Bare hills suitable for afforestation referred to in this Circular means land that has been planned for production forests but has not had forests for at least three years prior (status Ia, Ib, Ic).

2. State-owned organizations referred to in this Circular include: Forest Protection Management Board, Specialized Forest Management Board, State-owned Forestry Farms, Forestry Companies, enterprises in which the State holds at least 50% of the charter capital and which have been granted or leased forest land by the State.

3. Non-state-owned organizations referred to in this Circular include: cooperatives, private enterprises, limited liability companies, joint-stock companies in which the State holds less than 50% of the charter capital, partnership companies, community groups.

4. Silvicultural activities referred to in this Circular: planting and caring for forests (including establishing seedling forests, seedling gardens, experimental forests); establishing nurseries; silvicultural advisory services (project development, technical design for silviculture; allocating land and forests, contracting land for tree planting); establishing firebreaks; mapping planting areas.

5. Long-term land allocation for tree planting: when state-owned organizations allocate land or lease land to households, individuals, or community groups, the duration of the allocation is the remaining time of the land allocation decision or lease contract between the state-owned organization and the competent authority, but not exceeding 50 years.

6. Concentrated forest area refers to the area of contiguous or adjacent forest plots forming a forest region, where the non-forest land area does not exceed 10% of the total concentrated forest area.

II- CONTENT OF GUIDELINES

1. Preparation, review, and approval of projects supporting afforestation of production forests

1.1. Determination of project sponsors and scope: the sponsor of projects supporting investment in afforestation of production forests is determined according to Clause 1, Article 15 of Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg of the Government.

a) Support project for household and individual production forest planting (hereinafter referred to as household): based on the current capacity of state-owned organizations, Forest Inspection Stations, Border Guard Posts (hereinafter referred to as state-owned organizations), and the existing area of production forest land, the county steering committee will unify the assignment to each unit to build support projects for household production forest planting in certain communes.

b) Non-state-owned organizations may independently build support projects for production forest planting. These projects can overlap with the communes of household production forest planting support projects but must not overlap in actual location.

c) For non-state-owned organizations without projects but with a need to plant forests: the provincial People's Committee (People's Committee) allows the construction of support projects for production forest planting, after approval of the project, it serves as the basis for allocating land and leasing land.

1.2. Content of building projects supporting afforestation of production forests:

a) Determining the area and target of afforestation until the forest matures, including:

- Afforestation on bare hills suitable for production forests;

- Afforestation after harvesting from planted forests funded by sources 327 and 661 now designated as production forest land;

- Identifying the type of land eligible for support (extremely difficult communes, border communes, other communes);

- Preliminarily identifying the forest owners eligible for support (ethnic minorities or ethnic Kinh);

- Recommending the main tree species for planting to the forest owners.

b) Developing plans for land allocation, leasing, and long-term land leasing for afforestation (as per Section 2 of this Circular).

c) Planning a system of seedling nurseries (as per Section 14 of this Circular).

d) Planning a system of firebreaks (as per Section 15 of this Circular).

e) An overall map (scale 1:10,000) clearly delineating the boundaries of the project area.

g) Total investment capital including the required investment support from the State budget and specifying the projected investment for each component.

h) Projected financial results.

i) The ability of the investor to mobilize capital.

In some cases, planning the nursery system, land allocation plan, land contracting for tree planting, and firebreak system planning can be developed into separate projects but must have specific reasons and be approved by the county steering committee, costs must fall within the allocated amount specified in Clause 1.4 of this Section.

1.3. Review and Approval:

a) For projects supporting investment in afforestation of production forests for households established by state-owned organizations:

- After the project is established, the county project management board (PMO) reports to the county steering committee and seeks the review opinion of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD). Within 15 working days from receiving complete valid documents, if the Department of Agriculture and ARD does not issue a written opinion, it is considered to have agreed with the project. Within the next 10 working days, the county PMO submits the project for review and approval by the provincial People's Committee. The approval decision must be sent to members of the county steering committee, provincial PMO, and related organizations and individuals;

- For state-owned organizations that already have support projects for individual and household production forest planting but do not comply with the investor requirements and support levels stipulated in Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg, the project leader is allowed to implement and disburse funds according to the approved decision until the end of 2008; simultaneously, they must review and adjust the project according to this Circular and report to the county People's Committee for approval before the provincial People's Committee allocates the budget for implementation from 2009.

b) For projects of non-state organizations:

- The provincial People's Committee assigns competent agencies (the Department of Agriculture and ARD leads for forestry planting projects and forestry infrastructure investments; the Department of Planning and Investment leads for comprehensive investment projects) to organize reviews and submit to the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee for approval;

- For non-state-owned organizations that already have investment projects and have received one of the following decisions from the competent authority: project approval decision; land allocation decision; land lease contract, only need to prepare plans for using investment support funds according to Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg and submit to the provincial People's Committee for approval and allocation of the plan.

1.4. Costs for preparing and reviewing support projects for individual and household production forest planting are calculated at 30,000 VND per hectare, including firebreak planning, nursery system planning, and land allocation planning.

2. Procedures for preparing plans for allocating land and forests, issuing land use right certificates, and contracting land for forest planting for organizations and households under the Support Program for Production Forest Planting

2.1. Preparing plans for allocating land, issuing land use right certificates, and contracting forestry land:

a) Principles for allocating land, leasing land, and contracting forestry land:

- All forest land areas in the project must be allocated land, leased land, and issued land use rights certificates, or issued land allocation maps (only in places where conditions for issuing land use rights certificates are not met) for planting forests, establishing nurseries, establishing seedling forests, seedling gardens, and seed centers;

- The area of forestry land planned for production forests (or converted from protective forests to production forests) leased by households from state-owned forest enterprises, agricultural and forestry companies, other state units, or non-state enterprises that were converted from state enterprises when implementing the state enterprise restructuring program, if within three consecutive years the lessee does not receive support in terms of seedlings, materials, techniques, or the lessor only uses state budget funds to provide support (New Forest Planting Project of 5 million hectares or the previous Program 327), in reality the lessor only leases without providing support and collects rent, then the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee shall consider and decide to reclaim this area to allocate, lease, and issue land use right certificates according to regulations.

In cases where the forestry land is within the planning area for raw material supply to wood processing factories specifically approved when planting forests under Decision 147/2007/QĐ-TTg, such areas need not be reclaimed but should be transferred to long-term stable forest land leasing for the lessees. Product distribution will be based on the specific capital contribution ratio of each party and the product selling price according to market prices agreed upon in the leasing contract. If the lessor does not contribute capital, the lessee only needs to pay management fees as stipulated in Section 2, Article 6 of Decision 147/2007/QĐ-TTg.

b) The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Natural Resources and Environment to compile the total area of forestry land to be reclaimed and submit it to the Provincial People's Committee for decision, and transfer it to the competent authority to issue land use right certificates according to the guidance at point a, clause of this provision.

c) Based on the approved plan for three types of forests and the principle of land allocation and reclamation, the District Project Management Board shall take the lead in formulating plans for land allocation, leasing, and forest land leasing, conducting announcements and consultations with local residents and communities to adjust the plan (if necessary). Then, they shall hire units with relevant functions to measure and complete the documentation to submit to the competent authority to issue land use right certificates.

2.2. Content of the land allocation plan: determining the area of land within the project area, clearly distinguishing between the area of land already having land use right certificates, the area requiring issuance of land use right certificates or forest land leasing, and the area needing to be reclaimed to issue land use right certificates. For leased land (without issuing land use right certificates), the lessor must prepare a land lease map at a scale of 1/5000 with confirmation from the District People's Committee to hand over to the lessee.

2.3. Costs for land allocation, forest allocation, and contracted land for forest planting (until obtaining land use right certificates)

a) The cost of allocating land, leasing land, and leasing forestry land to households averages VND 200,000 per hectare, with specific costs approved by the competent authority.

b) The cost of allocating land and leasing land to non-state organizations is VND 100,000 per hectare (from the stage of preparing the plan to issuing land use right certificates). The investor is permitted to prepare design estimates, approve land allocation and leasing costs, and implement according to the assigned plan.

2.4. The time limit for completing the issuance of land use right certificates is within 12 months from the date of signing the forest planting contract.

3. Procedures and formalities for pre-investment support for afforestation.

3.1. For households

a) The condition for receiving pre-support is that the village must have at least 50 hectares of concentrated land for afforestation. Pre-support will not be provided for small scattered areas.

b) Procedures and formalities for pre-support

- Based on the three-year afforestation support plan assigned and the project area, the District Project Management Board shall notify all communes and organize meetings with each village to disseminate the afforestation plan, planting locations, management and protection measures, discuss and modify (if necessary) until at least 70% of participants agree, and provide a model application form for afforestation requests to households;

- If there is a need for afforestation, households shall submit an application (according to the attached model) confirmed by the village head to the Commune People's Committee. Within ten days from the end of the submission period, the Commune People's Committee must compile the afforestation demand in its jurisdiction, including lists of households, afforestation areas, and locations, prioritized and publicly posted at the Commune People's Committee and submitted to the District Project Management Board;

- Based on the applications, minutes of the meetings, planned land areas, and approved afforestation plans, the District Project Management Board shall cooperate with the Commune People's Committee and villages to unify and submit to the District People's Committee for approval of the list of households participating in afforestation, afforestation areas, and locations;

- After the District People's Committee approves the list of households for afforestation, the investor is responsible for publicly announcing at the Commune People's Committee and signing afforestation contracts and providing technical guidance to households according to the approved list.

c) Pre-support will be paid in two installments. In the first year, support for afforestation seedlings and fertilizers (if applicable) will be provided. The remaining amount (if any) will be paid in the third year after the forest inspection.

d) Inspection and settlement:

- Annually, when the forest meets the inspection criteria, the investor shall notify the schedule for inspection to all forest owners and Village Forest Development Boards. Based on the inspection schedule, the investor shall take the lead, invite Village Forest Development Boards to participate as members to inspect for forest owners;

- Documents required for inspection for household forests: forest planting contract, certificate of origin of seeds (if seed type requires proof of origin);

- Settlement documents: extract of the contract prepared by the project investor, inspection record of the forest;

3.2. For non-state organizations

a) The condition for pre-support is that the plan must include at least 100 hectares of concentrated afforestation.

When the afforestation support project is approved, the investor shall submit a request to the Provincial People's Committee to be allocated a three-year afforestation support plan; within fifteen working days, the Provincial People's Committee shall base on the assigned plan to decide to allocate the three-year support plan to the investor according to its authority.

b) Pre-support will be paid in two installments: when the plan is assigned, the investor is allowed to advance 50% of the support funding to prepare seeds and prepare the planting site; the remainder will be paid in the third year when the forest is inspected and approved by the District Project Management Board.

c) Inspection and settlement:

- When the forest meets the inspection criteria, the investor shall submit an inspection request along with the internal inspection report to the District Project Management Board. Within fifteen working days, the District Project Management Board shall take the lead, invite some departments and the County People's Committee to inspect for the investor;

- Documents for acceptance: decision approving the project, document approving the plan, decision approving the technical design estimate for planting and caring for forests, decision establishing the Project Management Board (BQLDA), certificate of seed origin (if the type of seed requires origin);

- Settlement documents: document approving the forest planting plan and inspection record of the forest;

4. Procedures and formalities for post-investment forest planting support

4.1. For households

a) Object:

- Households have a certificate of land use rights (for production forest planting);

- Household has long-term land lease contracts (including production forest land and protective forest land now reclassified as production forest land) with state-owned organizations (including state-owned enterprises that have been privatized) before Decision 147/2007/QĐ-TTg took effect;

- Household has land within the planning area for planting production forests, currently cultivating stably for three years or more without disputes but without land use rights certificates or long-term land lease contracts: the household needs to provide a self-drawn plot map, self-measured land area, clearly stating the location and boundaries of the plot, confirmed by adjacent landowners to ensure no disputes; this map must be confirmed by the village and commune authorities. This area must complete the issuance of land use rights certificates or land allocation maps for forest planting within twelve months for the forest owner.

b) Procedures: as point b, Clause 3.1, Section 3 of this Circular.

Within twenty working days from the date of receipt of the application, the BQLDA at the district level, based on the approved forest planting support plan of the Project, shall be responsible for dispatching staff to verify the site and determine the level of support according to regulations to sign a forest planting support contract, along with a technical guide for planting and caring for forests for the household.

c) Inspection and settlement:

- When the planted forest reaches 16 to 18 months old, the BQLDA at the district level will notify all forest owners, the Commune Forest Development Board, and the Village Forest Development Board of the inspection schedule and organize inspections according to the notified schedule for the forest owners.

- Documents required for inspection: forest planting support contract, certificate of origin of seeds (if seed type requires proof of origin);

- Settlement documents: extract of the contract prepared by the project investor, inspection record of the forest;

- Post-investment support shall be paid in one lump sum immediately after the forest is inspected;

4.2. For non-state organizations

a) Upon receiving the decision approving the project from the competent authority, the project owner registers a three-year forest planting plan with the Provincial People's Committee. Within fifteen working days, the Provincial People's Committee, based on the assigned plan, issues a document approving the plan for the investor.

b) The project owner, based on the assigned plan, shall develop a technical design, budget for planting and caring for the forest, and self-approve according to current regulations to implement forest planting;

c) Inspection and payment:

- When the forest meets the acceptance criteria, the forest owner submits a report (with internal inspection records for each plot and section attached) to the BQLDA at the provincial level requesting forest acceptance. Within fifteen working days, the BQLDA at the provincial level is responsible for inviting relevant departments and representatives of the District People's Committee to organize forest acceptance for the investor.

- Documents for acceptance: decision approving the project, document approving the plan, decision approving the technical design estimate for planting and caring for forests, certificate of seed origin (if the type of seed requires origin).

- Settlement files: approval documents for afforestation plans and inspection reports of the competent authority;

- Post-investment support shall be paid in one lump sum immediately after the forest is inspected;

5. Inspection time and quality standards for inspected forests

5.1. Acceptance time for pre-investment support: first acceptance when the forest reaches 8 to 10 months old, second acceptance when the forest reaches 31 to 34 months old.

5.2. Acceptance time for post-investment support: when the planted forest reaches 16 to 18 months old.

5.3. Quality standards for accepted forests: survival rate of trees reaching 85% or higher compared to the number of planted trees, with weeding and mulching completed before acceptance. Areas not meeting the standard must be replanted and accepted in the following year.

The planted trees grow well, with a survival rate distributed relatively evenly, each gap without trees having an area smaller than 100 square meters,²The survival rate of trees must reach 85% or higher compared to the number of planted trees, with weeding and mulching completed before acceptance. Areas not meeting the standard must be replanted and accepted in the following year.

6. Completion map for forest planting: In the third year of the three-year planting plan, the BQLDA at the district level is responsible for preparing a digital map to record the results of forest planting for the entire area planted during the three-year period, with a scale of 1/10,000. The map is prepared together with the final monitoring and evaluation report for the BQLDA at the provincial level to monitor and compile reports for the Central Steering Committee. The cost of preparing the digital map is 30,000 VND per hectare.

7. Procedures and formalities for supporting scattered tree planting

7.1. Principles of support

a) The BQLDA at the district level collaborates with the Commune People's Committee and village, and organizations with scattered tree planting land to develop a scattered tree planting plan in the project area. The BQLDA at the district level organizes for participants to register planting, clearly identifying the planting location, planting time, and tree species.

b) Each organization, individual, or household can only receive support once during the implementation phase from now until 2015.

c) Scattered tree planting by households on field borders in combination with agricultural crop protection; scattered trees planted by specific organizations (such as schools, health clinics...) and benefiting from them, with support for no more than 200 scattered trees per hectare of existing land. Specific levels are determined by the District People's Committee.

d) Scattered trees on public land (roads, ditches), the Commune People's Committee may assign organizations such as the Youth Union, Veterans' Association, cooperatives, farmers' associations, and communities to plant and benefit from them.

e) Based on the approved plan, the BQLDA at the district level notifies organizations, individuals, and households to register in advance to prepare seeds. The registration period varies depending on the seedling cultivation period.

g) After compiling the plan and the demand for scattered tree planting in the area, the BQLDA at the district level, together with the commune and village, prioritize and submit the scattered tree planting plan to the District People's Committee for approval. The scattered tree planting plan must be publicly announced at the commune and village offices (village cultural centers) and notified to each organization, individual, and household concerned.

h) The provision of scattered tree planting seeds must be tendered openly (according to the three-year plan), and the tender package cannot be divided to avoid investment procedures.

7.2. Methods and levels of support. Forest owners may choose one of the following two forms:

a) Post-investment support: Organizations and households planting scattered trees as stipulated in Clause 7.1 of this Section, after the trees have grown for 16 to 18 months and meet the acceptance criteria specified in Clause 5.3 of Section 5, will be paid 100% of the seed price, at a rate of 1.5 million VND per 1,500 trees.

b) Pre-investment support: scattered tree planting seeds for organizations and households are purchased at a preferential price of 20% of the actual seed price in the province (actual seed price is the tender price provided locally), with the remaining 80% funded from the budget for scattered tree planting. The proceeds from selling seeds are collected by the BQLDA at the district level and used to prepare seeds for the following year.

7.3. Converted area from scattered tree planting is: 1,000 trees are equivalent to one hectare of concentrated planting for tree species with a cycle over ten years; 1,500 trees are equivalent to one hectare for tree species with a cycle under ten years.

8. Management of afforestation seed sources

8.1. Organizations, individuals, and households are permitted to produce and supply planting materials for forest trees (seedlings, seeds, propagation materials) for major forestry tree species listed in the published directory, which must necessarily have a certificate of origin for the seed lot in accordance with the Forestry Plant Variety Management Regulation issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Decision No. 89/2005/QĐ-BNN).

8.2. Organizations and households planting forests may purchase propagation materials and seedlings from seed source providers and production facilities, but they must comply with the provisions of Clause 8.1 of this Section.

The management board at the district level bases on the demand for planting materials from forest planting contracts and requests for planting materials from households to develop a suitable scattered planting plan in line with the actual situation in the locality.

8.3. Seed price management: every January, the Provincial People's Committee approves and publishes the afforestation seed prices for all types of seeds in the locality.

8.4. Publicize planting materials: each year, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development publicly announces in writing the production facilities that meet quality standards and planting materials within their jurisdiction. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development publicizes on its website the production facilities that meet quality standards and planting materials nationwide.

9. Determining and implementing the level of support for forest planting

The support level for each item is taken from the total allocated budget, specifically as follows:

 

Provinces base on actual conditions of their locality may use local budget to supplement support for projects with high seedling costs implemented in difficult areas

For the cost support for forest promotion work at 100,000 đ - 200,000 đ/ha/year: mainly used to pay salaries, training, and travel expenses for staff.

10. Enjoyment of benefits by non-state organizations, individuals, and households receiving contracts for special-purpose forests and protective forests previously funded by Program 327 and the New Forest Planting Project of 5 million hectares, after being approved as production forests.

10.1. For areas of forest where households and non-state organizations have received contracts for all stages, from planting, caring for, to protecting the forest, they will be transferred to long-term stable contracts or granted land use rights certificates according to regulations; enjoy benefits as stipulated in Article 6 of Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg.

Upon harvesting, the forest owner must replant the forest within 12 months as prescribed without state budget support for the next cycle

10.2. For areas of forest where households only receive contracts for the protection stage (currently receiving protection contracts): when harvesting, households will receive additional money for forest protection, averaging 200,000 VND/ha/year of protection from the proceeds of selling timber harvested from the area under management and protection. Specific amounts are proposed by state-owned organizations and decided specifically by the People's Committee of the district.

All revenue obtained after deducting legitimate costs for auctioning harvesting and supporting the contractor must be deposited into a temporary account to support forest planting as stipulated in Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg. In cases where the revenue from the auction is lower (or insufficient) to supplement the contractor's support, the revenue should first cover legitimate costs for management, design, and preparation of auction documents by state-owned organizations, and the remainder should be distributed to households based on the area and number of years of management and protection of the forest.

Harvesting and selling timber belonging to this category must go through public auction procedures as currently regulated: state-owned organizations managing the forest decide on the time of harvesting, prepare auction documents for the area of forest, submit them to competent authorities for approval, and organize public auctions.

10.3. For areas of protective forest where the project owner previously invested additional self-funding for planting, caring for, and protecting the forest, and has been approved by competent authorities, when selling these areas of forest, the proceeds are handled in the following priority order: legitimate costs for auctioning and harvesting timber, supplementary support for households, the remaining amount is divided according to the ratio of investment between government funds and the project owner's funds, the portion corresponding to government funds will be collected to continue investing in forest planting under this policy. The project owner receives profits corresponding to the additional investment made.

10.4. For areas of protective forest where the project owner still manages without household participation up to now, the project owner decides on the time of harvesting. The project owner prepares documents for public auction, submits them to competent authorities for approval, and implements the sale. The proceeds are deposited into the project owner’s temporary account and reported to the provincial People's Committee for permission to implement investments as stipulated in Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg.

10.5. For areas of protective and special-purpose forests currently under basic construction (1 year planting + 3 years care), when planning to convert to production forests according to Directive No. 38/2005/CT-TTg dated December 5, 2005, the following measures shall be taken:

a) For areas already allocated and stably contracted to non-state economic components, these components continue to fund care and protection of the forest and enjoy benefits

b) For state-owned organization areas, follow the approved standard for the full period of basic forest construction

11. Logging and payment of forest owners' obligations

11.1. Before harvesting, the forest owner must notify the specific harvesting plan for each plot to the Forest Protection Division of the district, and send a copy to the People's Committee of the commune for monitoring. Within five working days from receipt of the notification, if the Forest Protection Division does not object in writing, the forest owner may proceed with harvesting, transporting, and selling the products. Within 45 days from sending the wood harvesting plan to the Forest Protection Division, the forest owner is responsible for depositing money into the commune and village forest development fund as prescribed. If the forest owner fails to make the payment within the specified period, penalties will be imposed similar to those for late tax payments.

After logging, the planted area must be replanted within 12 months

11.2. The rice price for payment into the commune budget is calculated based on the common rice price set annually by the provincial People's Committee (like the agricultural tax rice price)

11.3. The Forest Development Board of the Commune and Village shall be responsible for opening separate accounts and collecting fees from forest owners. This amount shall be used in accordance with Clause 21.8, Section 21 of this Circular.

12. Investment support for seedling forests and nurseries

12.1. Develop planning projects for seedling forests and nurseries:

a) Planning for seedling forests and seedling nurseries is a long-term, stable plan managed uniformly by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development according to general regulations. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development takes the lead in developing plans for the system of seedling forests and nurseries until 2050:

- The planning project for the system of seedling forests and nurseries is fundamentally based on ensuring the ability to provide planting materials for the industry. Primarily using existing planting materials, supplemented by new planting materials in line with the strategic planning for forestry planting materials approved by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

- Identifying the investor, location, and area of seedling forests and nurseries capable of providing planting materials, the area requiring ownership conversion, where state-owned organizations manage only 30% of the area of national importance seedling forests and nurseries;

- Solutions for transferring investors for seedling forests and nurseries that require transfer;

- For newly planted seedling forests and nurseries, the scale must be at least one hectare. For converted seedling forests, the scale must be at least five hectares.

b) The forest seedling planning and seedling garden planning shall be submitted for review by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and approved by the Provincial People's Committee. The approval decision must be sent to the seedling forest owners and seedling gardens and made public.

12.2. Investment, acceptance, settlement, and finalization of seedling forests and nurseries

a) Conditions for receiving investment support for seedling forests and seedling gardens: having a land use right certificate; having a stable long-term land lease contract or forest lease contract; or having a map of the seedling forest and seedling garden area drawn by the investor and confirmed by adjacent land users as non-contentious and confirmed by the commune People's Committee. The investor's commitment letter to use the land for the purpose of building a stable long-term seedling forest and seedling garden, and committing to only change the purpose of using the seedling forest with the permission of the competent authority. Priority planning will be given to investors and households with forestry knowledge (holding degrees from universities or specialized secondary schools).

b) The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is responsible for guiding investors in designing technical plans and detailed budgets for establishing new seedling forests and seedling gardens, converting seedling forests and seedling gardens for forest protection. Investors may hire consultants to prepare technical design and budget plans, or prepare such plans themselves based on the guidance of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is responsible for signing investment support contracts (according to the attached contract model) with investors within three months after the provincial People's Committee's decision approves the seedling forest and seedling garden planning.��ing new seedling forests and seedling gardens, converting seedling forests and seedling gardens for protecting seedling forests and seedling gardens. Investors can hire consultants to prepare technical design and budget plans, or prepare such plans themselves based on the guidance of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is responsible for signing investment support contracts (according to the attached contract model) with investors within three months after the provincial People's Committee's decision approves the seedling forest and seedling garden planning.

c) After signing the contract, the investor shall implement the investment according to the contract.

d) Annually in the fourth quarter, the investor must report the implementation results according to the contract to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. Within twenty working days, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is responsible for forming an acceptance committee. The composition of the acceptance committee is similar to the recognition committee for forestry seed sources (according to the management regulations for forestry seeds), and additional members from the provincial Project Management Board, the commune Forest Development Board where the seedling forest and seedling garden are located are invited to accept the investor.

e) Acceptance documents include the contract between the seedling forest owner and the seedling garden owner and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, proof of origin of superior trees, planting and construction logs compared to the technical design plan that has been guided. These documents serve as the basis for issuing a certificate of qualified seed source to the seed source owner.

g) Payment documents include the acceptance minutes and the project planning approval decision for seedling forests and seedling gardens by the provincial People's Committee.

h) Investment in seedling forests and seedling gardens is disbursed in four installments. The first installment is 30% of the support level immediately after signing the contract, the second installment is 30% paid after the first year's acceptance of the seedling forest and seedling garden investment. The third installment is paid after the third year's acceptance of the seedling forest, and the fourth installment is paid after the fourth year's acceptance, each installment being 20% of the support level.

i) The provincial Project Management Board is entitled to 3% of the total state support capital for seedling forest owners and seedling garden owners to implement planning, technical guidance, contract management, and procedures for issuing land use rights certificates to seedling forest owners and seedling garden owners. Issuing certificates of qualified seed origins. These costs are clearly stated in the contract between the parties. The provincial Project Management Board disburses according to current administrative service cost regulations.

13. Procedures for constructing projects to support investment in high-quality forest seedling production centers

13.1. Investment policy and procedures:

a) If there is no tissue culture nursery for forest tree propagation in the locality, the provincial Project Management Board publicly announces through mass media to select enterprises for investment, prioritizing enterprises with large forest planting areas in the locality, enterprises with joint ventures, associations, or cooperation with State-owned Research Institutes and Universities that have tissue culture technology for forest trees. After selection, the provincial Project Management Board compiles and submits to the provincial People's Committee for permission to invest.

b) After obtaining the directive, the investor builds the project and submits it for review by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. Within twenty working days from receiving complete files, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development must issue a review document to the investor. The review content must comply with Article 8 of Decision 147/2007/QĐ-TTg.

c) The investor approves the general design and budget estimate. The investor's decision must be sent to relevant agencies at the provincial level, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

d) After the approval decision, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall sign a contract (according to the attached model) for the project investor within twenty working days from the date of receipt of the project investor's decision.

13.2. Capital advance and acceptance, settlement and final payment

a) After signing the contract and investing more than 50% of the work volume (confirmed by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development), the investor can apply for corresponding support funds based on the completed volume.

b) After completing the investment, the investor reports in writing to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. Within twenty days, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development forms an acceptance committee and accepts the investor. The committee consists of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development as the main organizer, the Department of Planning and Investment, the Construction Department, and the Science and Technology Department.

c) The acceptance minutes, review document, investment decision, and investment directive are the basis for disbursing the first installment of support funds to the investor.

d) For the second disbursement, the investor reports the actual production volume sold to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for verification. If the sales reach a capacity of one million trees per year, an acceptance minute is prepared for the investor to disburse the remaining funds.

e) The provincial acceptance committee and the provincial Project Management Board are entitled to 2% of the total state support capital for high-quality seedling center investors to implement reviews, acceptances, contract management, and procedures for issuing land use rights certificates. These costs are clearly stated in the contract between the parties. The provincial Project Management Board disburses according to current administrative service cost regulations.

14. Seedling Nursery Investment Support

14.1. Procedures and formalities for planning the seedling nursery system of the Provincial Project Management Board under State-Owned Enterprises:

a) The Provincial Project Management Board shall compile a comprehensive list of existing seedling nurseries within its jurisdiction (location, area, scale, production capacity, nursery owner...).

b) Organize the planning of the seedling nursery system within its jurisdiction in accordance with Article 9 of Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg, which must include existing nurseries in the plan.

c) Determine the nursery owner: a domestic organization, a household, or an individual.

d) New planned nurseries must have a land use right certificate, or a nursery area map drawn by the investor and confirmed by adjacent land users as non-contentious and confirmed by the commune People's Committee. The nursery owner's commitment letter to use the land for the purpose of building a nursery for over ten years.

e) The planning content includes: determining the nursery location, whether it is a new nursery or an upgraded one, the current land area, and the nursery owner.

g) After planning, the investor obtains the review opinion of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, then submits it for review and approval by the district People's Committee. The approval decision must be sent to the district Steering Committee members, the provincial Project Management Board, and the nursery owners.

h) After the planning scheme is approved, the Project Management Board at the district level shall be responsible for guiding technical design for the nursery owner.

i) After the design is completed, the Project Management Board at the district level must sign a contract with the nursery owner (the contract model is attached).

k) The State support level as stipulated in Clause 5, Article 9, Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg. The support amount from the central government budget for nurseries located in border communes shall not exceed 700 million VND/nursery, the remaining part shall be supplemented by the local government budget.

14.2. Capital advance and acceptance, settlement and final payment:

a) After signing the contract and investing more than 50% of the work volume (confirmed by the Project Management Board at the district level), the investor is entitled to advance the corresponding support funding for the completed volume.

b) Upon completion of the nursery according to the contract, the nursery owner shall report in writing to the Project Management Board at the district level. Within 20 working days, the Project Management Board at the district level shall be responsible for inviting representatives of the County Steering Committee and the Forest Development Board of the commune to inspect and accept the project for the investor.

c) The settlement documents include: the support investment contract for the nursery, the acceptance certificate for the completion of the nursery construction project.

d) The Project Management Board at the district level shall benefit 3% of the total state support capital for the nursery owner to implement planning, technical guidance, contract management, and procedures for issuing land use right certificates for nurseries. These costs shall be clearly stated in the contract between the parties. The Project Management Board at the district level shall disburse these expenses according to the current regulations on administrative public service costs.

14.3. For nurseries of non-state organizations that plant forests on a scale of over 1,000 hectares, the investment in nurseries shall be decided immediately during the forest planting project development process. The enterprise acts as the investor of the nursery (without needing a nursery construction contract). The enterprise (which is also the Project Management Board at the district level) shall independently develop the technical design and budget estimate for review by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, then the investor shall approve and independently implement the new nursery with a support of 200 million VND/nursery and upgrade existing nurseries. The Provincial Project Management Board shall lead the inspection for the Project Management Board at the district level.

15. Procedures and formalities for supporting the construction of fire prevention barriers (firebreaks)

15.1. Firebreak standards

a) Apply industry standards (standard 04 TCVN 89-2007), firebreaks shall have an average width of 8-12 meters and vary depending on the height of the forest trees, terrain, and financial capacity. Firebreaks shall be planned in conjunction with compartment roads, facilitating transportation and connection with existing rural roads. In each forest planting cycle, the initial investment includes leveling, grading, and building dams across streams (with an average road surface width of about 5 meters) to combine as transport and movement roads, the remaining width of the road shall be cleared white. In subsequent years, clean and maintain the entire firebreak.

b) In addition to the firebreaks supported above, the Project Management Board at the district level must plan auxiliary runways in forest areas of 100 hectares or more, dividing compartments and runways connected to firebreaks; or plan green runways in high-risk fire forest areas. The width of auxiliary runways ranges from 5-10 meters, with intervals between runways ranging from 50-100 meters.

15.2. Principles and procedures for planning firebreaks by the Project Management Board at the district level under state-owned organizations:

- Utilize existing footpaths and public roads;

- Ensure convenience for transportation and forest fire prevention;

- The network of roads should be evenly distributed and comply with Clause 1, Article 10 of Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg;

- Obtain agreement from at least 70% of the forest owners;

- The Project Management Board at the district level is the investor for planning and investing in firebreaks. During the planning process, meetings with forest owners should be held approximately three times to unify plans. If the firebreak passes through the land of the forest owner, the Project Management Board at the district level needs to explain and promote so that the forest owner voluntarily contributes to the community for the common good, without using state support funds for compensation;

- When planning, pay attention to areas of production forests planted before but not yet supported with firebreaks, which can be supplemented in planning and receive support according to Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg.

15.3. Investment procedures and final acceptance payment:

- After approval of the plan, the Project Management Board at the district level collaborates with forest owners to mark boundaries on-site to form the road system;

- Based on the assigned plan, the Project Management Board at the district level may design or hire a design estimate to submit for approval by the People's Committee at the district level. After the design estimate is approved, the Project Management Board at the district level shall either construct it themselves or hire contractors to complete the project.

- Inspection and settlement: after the investment, the Project Management Board at the district level shall be responsible for reporting to the People's Committee at the district level. Within 20 days, the People's Committee at the district level shall be responsible for inviting additional representatives from the Provincial Project Management Board and the Forest Development Board of the commune to inspect and accept the project for the investor.

15.4. Maintenance and upkeep.

Annually, the Project Management Board at the district level prepares a maintenance and upkeep plan to submit for approval by the People's Committee at the district level and implement. The average annual cost is 1 million VND/km.

15.5. Advance funding: after the design estimate is approved, the Project Management Board at the district level is entitled to advance 50% of the approved capital for the project investment.

16. Forest Industry Roads

The routes supported for construction under specific processing facilities and raw material regions as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 10 of Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg, the central government budget support shall not exceed 300 million VND/km (including bridges, culverts, and dams), the remainder being local and project owner's capital. Implementation shall follow the current investment and construction management regulations.

17. Wood Transportation Support in Northwest Region

17.1. Investment in wood processing plants combining veneer and MDF or particleboard manufacturing in Northwest provinces is supported according to Article 11 of Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg.

17.2. Content of the provincial People's Committee's approval for the investment project:

- Approve factory scale suitable for raw material sources;

- Approve factory location.

17.3. Guidelines for converting volume units (m3) of timber products to weight units (tons) as follows:

For MDF boards, 1 m³ product is equivalent to 750 kg;

For HDF boards, 1 m³ product is equivalent to 1000 kg;

For particle boards, 1 m³ product is equivalent to 700 kg;

For various types of glued veneer boards 1 meter long³ corresponds to 1000 kilograms.

17.4. Acceptance Council: the acceptance council for the processing plant is established by the Chairman of the People's Committee at the provincial level. Members include the Deputy Chairman of the People's Committee at the provincial level as the Chair of the council, and members from the Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development, Planning and Investment, Finance, Science and Technology, Industry and Trade.

17.5. Advance funding: when the plant is under construction and has completed 50% or more of the work volume, confirmed by the Provincial Project Management Board, the investor is allowed to advance the support funding, equivalent to the completed volume.

17.6. Deduction of support funds from tax payments as follows:

c) The deduction is carried out annually, and the enterprise determines the deductible amount and includes it in the annual tax settlement report of the enterprise, bearing responsibility for the accuracy of the tax settlement report. The deductible value in the year if not declared in the tax settlement report of that fiscal year can be deducted in the next fiscal year.

Annually, when determining the deductible amount, the enterprise must submit a confirmation of the deductible amount from the tax authority to the provincial project management board for consolidation and monitoring.

c) The deduction shall be carried out annually, enterprises shall self-determine the deductible amount and include it in their annual tax settlement reports, and bear responsibility for the accuracy of the tax settlement report. The deductible value in the year if not declared in the tax settlement report of that fiscal year shall be deducted in the following fiscal year.

18. Investment Support Management Boards for Industrial Forest Plantation at all levels

III - SOLUTIONS AND IMPLEMENTATION ORGANIZATION

18.2. County-level steering committees:

18.1. The Provincial Forest Management Board (FMB) is responsible for managing 5 million hectares of existing forests. If a province does not have a Forestry Service, then the FMB for 5 million hectares of provincial forest will be transferred to the Forest Protection Service to implement. In cases where a province lacks both a Forestry Service and a Forest Protection Service, it shall be assigned to a public service unit with forestry functions to carry out.

The county-level steering committee is established by the Chairman of the County People's Committee, headed by a deputy chairman of the County People's Committee responsible for agriculture and forestry, with members including: the County Forest Protection Station as the permanent body, representatives from the United Front, Farmers' Association, Veterans' Association, Youth Union, County Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, County Department of Natural Resources and Environment. The operation rules are unifiedly issued by the steering committee. The operating costs of the county-level steering committee are entitled to 0.8% of the management fees of the total forestry expenses in the area, and are used according to current regulations.

Districts with 1,000 hectares or more of land for commercial forest plantations must establish a Steering Committee. The district-level Steering Committee must be linked with other forestry-related committees in the area (Committee for Urgent Issues on Forest Protection and Fire Prevention).

The district-level Steering Committee is established by the Chairman of the People's Committee at the district level, headed by a deputy chairman of the People's Committee at the district level responsible for agriculture and forestry, and its members include: the district-level Forest Protection Station serving as the permanent body, representatives from the United Front, Farmers' Association, Veterans' Association, Youth Union, Agriculture and Rural Development Department, Natural Resources and Environment Department. The operational regulations are uniformly issued by the Steering Committee. The operating costs of the district-level Steering Committee are entitled to 0.8% of the management fees of the total forestry production cost within the area, subject to current regulations.

b) The county-level project management board has a separate account and is allowed to use the existing seal of the agency for transactions.

c) In cases where forest growers register and request the county-level project management board to provide seedlings, the county-level project management board must organize public bidding to supply seeds according to a three-year plan.

18.4. Village Forest Development Board: The village forest development board is established according to the provisions of Clause 3, Article 16, Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg, consisting of:

c) If the forest growers register and request the district-level FMB to provide seedlings, the district-level FMB must organize a public tender to supply seeds according to a three-year plan.

The operation rules of the village forest development board are designed towards democracy and transparency. All annual revenue and expenditure plans must be approved by at least 80% of the participants in the annual village member meeting. Specific rules are approved by the Chairman of the Village People's Committee (a reference model is available on the website along with this Circular).

A deputy village chief serves as the head of the committee. Members include: the local Forest Ranger, the agricultural and forestry officer of the village, the Land Administration Officer of the village, a representative from the Youth Union of the village, the Farmers' Association of the village, the Village Militia, or the Veterans' Association of the village, and a representative from each village forest development team (each team arranges one representative).

The operational regulations of the village forest development committee are designed towards democracy and transparency. All annual revenue and expenditure plans must be approved by at least 80% of the participants at the annual meeting of all members. Specific regulations are approved by the Chairman of the People's Committee at the village level (a reference model is available on the website along with this Circular).

18.5. Village Forest Development Board: The Village Forest Development Board is established in accordance with Clause 4, Article 16 of Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg, consisting of:

- The village head or deputy village head serves as the head of the committee. Members include: the village elder, a representative from the Youth Union, a representative from the Farmers' Association, a representative from the Women's Association, a representative from the Veterans' Association, and a farmer (one to three farmers).

The operational regulations of the village forest development committee are designed towards democracy and transparency, all annual revenue and expenditure plans must be approved by at least 80% of the participants at the biannual village meetings. Regulations of the village forest development committee are approved by the Chairman of the People's Committee at the village level (a reference model is available on the website along with this Circular).

19. Contract management and information management system

19.1. All contracts must be managed through an information technology system. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development will develop software to manage all contracts under Decision 147/2007/QĐ-TTg, providing the software to all localities and projects for uniform use.

19.2. All district-level FMBs must have computers connected to the provincial FMB network. All signed contracts must be entered into the management database within no more than three days after signing. On the 20th of each month, the district-level FMB must transfer data and submit reports to the provincial FMB. The provincial FMB must update the data and compile it to transfer to the Central Project Management Board by the 25th of each month.

19.3. Coding forest planting contracts for management:

- The afforestation contract code consists of the following parts: first, the contract number, which is taken from natural numbers, with the first contract being numbered 01, followed by the year the afforestation contract was signed, then the province code, followed by the district code, then the commune code, and finally the afforestation code (HDT).

- The province code consists of three letters derived from the initial letters of the province name and written in uppercase but not duplicated (using the province code in forest resource statistics (as listed in the attached list));

- The district code consists of two letters derived from the initial letters of the district name and written in uppercase, but not duplicated within the same province.

- The commune code consists of two letters derived from the initial letters of the commune name and written in uppercase, but not duplicated within the same district;

The district and commune codes are unified by the provincial FMB and communicated to the district-level FMB for use and to the Central Management Board for consolidation.

Example: The afforestation contract of Nguyen Van A household, with contract number 09, located in Phong Van Commune (PV), Luc Ngan District (LN), Bac Giang Province (BGI), planted in 2009, has the following code: 09/2009/BGI/LN/PV/HDT

19.4. Management of nursery contracts: similar to the management of forest planting contracts except for the final symbol of the nursery (which is: HĐVƯ)

19.5. Management of seedling forest and seedling garden contracts: similar to the management of forest planting contracts except for the final symbol of the seedling forest and seedling garden (which is: HĐRVG)

19.6. Management of high-quality seed center contracts: similar to the management of forest planting contracts except for the final symbol of the high-quality seed center (which is: HĐGCLC)

20. Management Costs

20.1. Administrative expenses are calculated as 10% of the total state budget investment capital for forestry activities. Allocation is as follows: 0.5% for central ministries and agencies; 0.7% for provincial level; 0.8% for district-level Steering Committees; and 6% for district-level FMBs, 1% for village forest development committees, and 1% for commune forest development committees. Administrative expenses of village and commune forest development committees are combined for the district-level FMB. Annually, based on the forest planting area of communes and villages, the district-level FMB is responsible for transferring funds to the villages and communes for disbursement.

20.2. Expenditure items: priority is given to training and enhancing the capacity of cadres at all levels such as training, experience exchange, and capacity enhancement of cadres and community residents; project evaluation and approval expenses; communication and community consultation expenses; conference expenses for mid-term and final reviews, commendation and awards, office supplies for management activities; management and operation expenses; salaries and allowances for FMB staff; travel expenses; annual financial settlement and project completion settlement expenses. For essential equipment (computers, bicycles, motorcycles) of the district-level FMB, if necessary, they can exceed 6% of the stipulated amount in the first year but should not exceed 6% of the total amount over three years.

20.3. Specifically, for the 0.5% central budget: apart from the above tasks, it can also be spent on researching and reviewing adjustments to some mechanisms and policies of the forestry industry. Economic, social, and environmental impact assessments of afforestation; independent auditing. Investment in the construction and experimental production of certain equipment, technologies, and models to serve the development of the forestry industry according to the policy of the Central Management Board, with funding approved by the investment decision-making authority.

20.4. Administrative expenses of state-owned organizations, provincial FMBs, and central authorities are detailed in the three-year plan and submitted for approval by the investment decision-making authority.

21. Compensation, Tax Reduction, and Payment of Obligatory Fees by Forest Owners

21.1. If the forest owner receives support for tree species that can be harvested after ten years but wishes to harvest earlier, provided that the time does not precede five years, the State shall be compensated 15% of the supported amount for each year of early harvesting. The compensation amount will be collected into the recovery account of the Project Management Board at the district level for reinvestment in afforestation.

21.2. For the area of planted forests under long-term stable contracts from state-owned organizations exempted from taxes and land use fees as case granted land, for leased land for households within the locality.

21.3. If forests do not meet the requirements stipulated in Point 5.3, Section 5 of this Circular, they shall be handled as follows:

- In cases where forests are lost due to unforeseeable causes such as natural disasters, fires, or pests, as defined according to the regulations of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the forest growers are not required to refund the received support funds;

- In cases where forests are lost and do not fall under the provisions mentioned above, they must compensate according to the provisions of Clause 2, Article 6, Decision 147/2007/QĐ-TTg. The agency signing the forest planting contract must terminate the contract and recover the capital to return to the budget and may use the recovered funds to invest in other areas within the same project.

21.4. For nurseries: if the nursery owner does not use the allocated land for producing seedlings for ten years, then for each year of stopping forestry seedling production, the nursery owner must compensate 15% of the supported amount.

21.5. For seedling forests and nurseries: seedling forests and nurseries are fixed planning. When the nursery or seedling forest owner has no need to operate seedling forests or nurseries, or when the quality of seedling forests or nurseries is not guaranteed, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development will take the lead in coordinating with relevant departments to report to the provincial People's Committee to decide on the recovery (seedling forests and nurseries together with land) and transfer to another investor without compensation.

In cases where the land use plan for seedling forests and nurseries is changed for public purposes, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development will permit the change and allow compensation.

21.6. For high-quality seedling centers: if the investor of the seedling center fails to comply with the regulations stipulated in the contract, they must compensate the entire supported amount plus commercial interest rates at the time of recovery.

21.7. Responsibility for recovering and using recovered funds: the agency that signs the contract is responsible for supervising the implementation of the contract and handling compensation according to regulations if there is a violation. The recovered funds will be deposited into the recovery account (compensation processing account) of that agency. Subsequently, it will report to the investment decision-making agency (district-level People's Committee or provincial People's Committee) to support afforestation according to Decision 147/2007/QĐ-TTg.

21.8. Collection and management of funds paid by forest owners as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 6 of Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg are as follows:

- For communes and villages: they must establish operational regulations for the Forest Development Board and management regulations for the commune and village forest development fund, then open accounts for forest owners to deposit money according to regulations. Account numbers must be notified to forest owners in the locality. If there are no operational and management regulations for the forest development fund, communes and villages will only open accounts for forest owners to deposit obligations without immediate use.

- For state-owned organizations: manage and use the budget as administrative expenses for forest protection and development.

22. Construction, compilation, allocation of plans and supervision and evaluation

22.1. Three-year plan construction:

a) Based on Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg and this Circular, the provincial People's Committee directs the construction of a three-year medium-term plan for supporting productive forest planting with specific annual plans based on approved projects and community consultations. Initially, the plan for 2008-2010 should be submitted to the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

b) The contents of the provincial plan include:

- Report on the evaluation of the implementation results of the previous three years (final period plan report, according to the assigned plan content, projects funded by other sources, and economic sectors participating);

- The next three-year plan including objectives, expected results, and investment sources, clearly distinguishing tasks and investments from state budget funds;

- List of projects, tasks, and funds according to policy regulations;

- The construction of the medium-term afforestation plan must be linked to the local socio-economic development plan according to the current five-year plan method.

22.2. Allocation of plans

a) The Ministry of Planning and Investment will take the lead, coordinating with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Finance to compile and�report the plan to the Prime Minister for decision on allocating a three-year plan for implementation.

b) After receiving the plan, ministries, sectors, and localities will allocate the three-year plan to specific projects, clearly defining the capital and tasks for each year for each project within thirty working days. The allocation results must be reported to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Planning and Investment for monitoring.

c) The subsequent three-year plan must prioritize the settlement of forest areas and investment contents implemented under the post-investment support form of the previous three-year plan.

d) For important projects with investment support from the state budget of 10 billion VND or more for non-state economic sectors according to Decision 147/2007/QĐ-TTg, the Prime Minister will allocate the project list and investment capital.

22.3. Plan adjustment

a) In the third quarter of the second year of the three-year plan, provinces will submit reports evaluating the implementation of the assigned plan (mid-term plan report) regarding volume, implemented capital, and policies to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Planning and Investment for consolidation and reporting to the Prime Minister for plan adjustment. The principle is that central authorities will reallocate unused capital from provinces to those in need.

b) Annually, based on the implementation situation of the Project Management Board at the district level, the provincial People's Committee will reallocate plans from projects at risk of not being implemented to projects that have good performance and capital needs. Capital cannot be transferred from forest protection tasks to infrastructure construction unless approved by the competent authority.

c) Adjustment of the Project Management Board at the district level will be carried out according to Point c, Clause 2, Article 17, Decision 147/2007/QĐ-TTg.

22.4. Supervision and evaluation: based on this Circular and Decision No. 147/2007/QĐ-TTg, each level shall develop a supervision and evaluation plan to achieve the policy's goals and results.

22.5. Responsibilities of related ministries and sectors

a) The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall take the lead in guiding technical standards not covered in this Circular and sustainable forest harvesting of planted forests.

b) The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall take the lead in developing guidelines for supervision and evaluation to ensure transparent and effective implementation of the policy.

c) The Ministry of Finance shall take the lead in guiding procedures for payment and final accounting of state budget expenditures.

23. Implementation Provisions

This Circular takes effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette; all circulars containing provisions contrary to this Circular will be abolished.

Any issues arising during the implementation process shall be promptly reported in writing to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and the Ministry of Finance for consideration and resolution./.